The first few times you prepare a whole turkey, you don’t worry too much about the way it looks. As long as it’s ready on time and the meat tastes good, the appearance isn’t all that important.
That said, there are subtle touches that can have an effect on the quality of the finished product. To help you achieve optimum results, here’s our guide on how to tuck turkey wings.
To tuck turkey wings, set the bird on a work surface with the breast side facing up. Use one hand to lift the turkey a couple of inches, and the other hand to tuck the wing so that it’s underneath the turkey. Repeat this process with the wing on the other side.
Tucking turkey wings will make the bird more visually appealing, but the reasoning behind the technique is actually a practical one.
Turkey wings are positioned on the outside of the bird, which means they’re exposed to the direct heat. They’re also relatively small, without a great deal of meat on the bone. When combined, these factors can result in wings that are extremely overcooked and dry.
It might not seem like that big of a deal for the wings to overcook. After all, they make up just a small percentage of the turkey’s overall mass. But if even a portion of the turkey is overcooked or burnt, it could affect the taste of the whole bird.
Get the Most Out of Your Dish
This is often an overlooked step that can end up burning the turkey. It may sound a little strange at first, but you’ll see for yourself how it makes all the difference.
Tucking the turkey wings will make it so much easier to handle the bird rather than your turkey looking messy and all over the place. Not doing so will make them stretch, making it a lot harder for you and will end up in distorting its perfect shape.
You won’t have that picture-perfect turkey on your dinner table if you skip this step. It won’t just save your turkey but will save your kitchen from getting dirty too!
When you see them do this step on TV, it looks simple and flawless but in reality, it’s just a little trickier than that. To make it easier for you, we have made a guide, which will teach you easy ways to tuck turkey wings. Using these two basic steps, you’ll know how to tuck turkey wings and continue your cooking easily.
What Do You Do With the Neck Cavity?
After removing the packaged giblets, you can opt to loosely fill the now-empty neck cavity with stuffing or similar ingredients, such as chopped onions, mushrooms, and herbs.
Do not overstuff the turkey cavity as these inner foods will expand and the turkey meat itself shrinks some during the cooking process. Overly stuffing your turkey can result in a slight food explosion.
How Do You Truss Turkey Wings?
The second big step of trussing a turkey is to truss the turkey wings. Flip the turkey over so that the breast now faces up.
There are different techniques for trussing a whole turkey, but if you are just trussing the turkey wings, take a cut of kitchen twine and wrap it around the chest and each turkey wing, securely tying the turkey wings into the shoulders and snugly against the breast.
FAQ
How do you tuck turkey wings back?
Holding a wing in your hand, lift that side of the turkey a couple of inches and tuck the wing underneath the bird’s back. Lower the turkey and repeat with the other side. Tucking the wings will make for more even roasting and keep them from burning.
How do you tuck in turkey wings for roasting?
Where do you put the wings when cooking a turkey?
Tuck the wing tips under the bottom of the turkey so they don’t burn. Put water in pan around the bird but not over it; you don’t want to wash away the butter or seasoning.
Do you cook a turkey wings up or down?
Tuck the wing tips under the bottom of the turkey so they don’t burn. Put water in pan around the bird but not over it; you don’t want to wash away the butter or seasoning.
